Device and method for labeling individual products

Abstract

The invention relates to a device (1) for labeling individual products (2), comprising an advancing device (3) for transporting each product (2) in a transport direction (X), a label dispensing device (4) for dispensing a label, which can be removed from a material strip (5), from a discharge point (6) in a dispensing direction (S), and a label transporting device (7) with a movable label transporting means (8) for transporting the dispensed label (5) from a transfer region (9), where the dispensed label (5) is transferred to the label transporting mean (8), to a delivery point (10), where the label (5) is applied onto the respective product (2). The label transport means (8) has a surface (11) which is brought into contact with the label (5). The aim of the invention is to simplify the labeling of individual products (2) and apply the labels (5) as precisely as possible. According to the invention, this is achieved in that the device (1) additionally has a label aligning device (12) with a roller (13) which has a roller axis (14) that is parallel to the surface (11) of the label transporting means (8) and a lateral surface (15) that is arranged circumferentially about the roller axis (14). The roller (13) is arranged such that an imaginary straight line (G) running from the discharge point (6) in the dispensing direction (S) intersects the lateral surface (15). The invention further relates to a corresponding method for labeling individual products (2).

Claims

1. An apparatus for labeling individual products comprising: an advancing device for transporting each individual product in a transporting direction; a label dispensing device for dispensing a label, said label being detachable from a material strip, in a dispensing direction from an output location at which the label is detached from the material strip by a dispensing edge or is created by severing a section from the material strip and thus becomes a dispensed label; a label transfer device with a movable label transport means for transferring the dispensed label from an acquisition region, in which the dispensed label is acquired by the label transport means, to a delivery location, at which the dispensed label is applied to the individual product, wherein the label transport means has a surface which is brought into contact with the dispensed label; and a label orienting device with a roller which has a roller axis parallel to the surface of the label transport means and a lateral surface arranged circumferentially around the roller axis, wherein the roller is arranged such that an imaginary straight line proceeding from the output location and extending in the dispensing direction intersects the lateral surface; wherein the roller is configured to deflect the front end of the dispensed label into contact with the surface of the label transport means in the acquisition region, and wherein the label transport means is configured to acquire the dispensed label after the front end thereof is deflected into contact with the surface of the label transport means in the acquisition region and to transfer the dispensed label to the delivery location at which the dispensed label is applied to the individual product.

2. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the label transfer device has, as the label transport means, an endless belt which runs through the acquisition region and the delivery location.

3. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein a perpendicular projection of the lateral surface of the roller onto the surface of the label transport means intersects or encircles the acquisition region, in which the dispensed label is acquired by the label transport means.

4. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the roller is in contact with the surface of the label transport means or is spaced apart from the surface of the label transport means by 0.5 to 3 mm.

5. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein a shortest distance between the lateral surface and/or the surface and the output location is 10 to 50 mm.

6. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the roller is driven or rolls freely.

7. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the imaginary straight line extends in a region which is located between a first plane, in which the output location and the roller axis extend, and a second plane, in which the output location extends and which tangentially touches the lateral surface on a side of the roller that faces the label transport means.

8. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the label orienting device has a sliding plate which is arranged between the output location and the roller and extends parallel or at an acute angle to the dispensing direction.

9. The apparatus as claimed in claim 8, wherein a projection of the sliding plate in a direction parallel to the dispensing direction intersects the lateral surface (15).

10. The apparatus as claimed in claim 8, wherein the label orienting device has a nozzle, and wherein the nozzle has a main emission direction that is directed toward the roller and/or toward the sliding plate.

11. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the label dispensing device has a printing unit for printing on the label that is detachable from the material strip.

12. A method for labeling individual products comprising steps of: dispensing a label in a dispensing direction from an output location of a label dispensing device, wherein at the output location the label is detached from a material strip by a dispensing edge or created by severing a section from the material strip and thus becomes a dispensed label; passing the dispensed label from the label dispensing device to a label transfer device; transporting the label from an acquisition region of the label transfer device to a delivery location of the label transfer device; transferring the label from the delivery location to an individual product to be labeled; and during the step of passing the dispensed label from the label dispensing device to the label transfer device, bringing the dispensed label into contact with a roller of a label orienting device such that the front end of the dispensed label is deflected by the roller into contact with the acguisition region of label transfer device and the dispensed label is thereafter transported bv the label transfer device to the delivery location at which the dispensed label is applied to the individual product.

13. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the label is an adhesive label which has an adhesive side and a side facing away therefrom.

14. The method as claimed in claim 13, wherein the adhesive side of the dispensed label contacts the label transfer device.

15. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein, during the step of passing the dispensed label from the label dispensing device to the label transfer device, bringing the dispensed label into contact with a sliding plate before bringing the dispensed label into contact with the roller.

16. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein, during the step of passing the dispensed label from the label dispensing device to the label transfer device, the dispensed label is pressed against the roller by an airjet produced by a nozzle.

17. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the endless belt is a label accelerating belt.

18. The apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein the roller is spaced apart from the surface of the label transport means by 0.5 to 1 mm.

19. The apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein the shortest distance between the lateral surface and/or the surface and the output location is 25 to 35 mm.

20. The apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein the label orienting device has a sliding plate which is arranged between the output location and the roller and extends parallel or at an acute angle to the dispensing direction, and wherein a projection of the sliding plate in a direction parallel to the dispensing direction intersects the lateral surface in a region between the first plane and the second plane.

Description

(1) There are thus a large number of possible ways of configuring and developing the apparatus according to the invention and the method according to the invention. In this regard, reference should be made to the claims dependent on independent claims 1 and 12 and also to the description of exemplary embodiments in conjunction with the drawing, in which:

(2) FIG. 1 shows a side view of a detail of an apparatus according to the present invention, and

(3) FIG. 2a)-c) show a schematic illustration of the carrying out of the method according to the invention with differently curved labels.

(4) FIG. 1 shows an apparatus 1 for labeling individual products 2, having an advancing device 3 for transporting each particular product 2 in a transporting direction X.

(5) The apparatus 1 has a label dispensing device 4 for dispensing a label 5, which is detachable from a material strip, in a dispensing direction S from an output location 6. The output location 6 is in this case a dispensing edge at which a material strip (not illustrated) is deflected strongly enough for labels 5 sticking thereto to be detached and moved onward in the dispensing direction S. The label dispensing device 4 additionally has a printing unit 20 with which the individual labels 5 are printed on.

(6) The apparatus 1 also has a label transfer device 7, which is provide with a belt-type, movable label transport means 8 for transferring the dispensed label 5 from an acquisition region 9, at which the dispensed label 5 is acquired by the label transport means 8, to a delivery location 10, at which the label 5 is applied to the particular product 2. The label transport means 8 configured as an endless belt 16 has a surface 11 which comes into contact with the label 5, specifically with the adhesive side 5a of the label 5.

(7) An essential feature of the apparatus 1 is the presence of a label orienting device 12 with a roller 13 which has a roller axis 14 parallel to the surface 11 of the endless belt 16 and a lateral surface 15 arranged circumferentially around the roller axis 14. The roller 13 is in this case arranged such that an imaginary straight line G proceeding from the output location 6 and in the dispensing direction S intersects the lateral surface 15.

(8) In the present case, the roller 13 is a corotating roller 13 that bears against the label transport means 8, which is thus not itself driven. A drive is also conceivable, however, in particular when the roller 13 is a freely rolling roller.

(9) As is clear from FIG. 2a), the roller 13 is arranged relative to the dispensing direction S such that the imaginary straight line G extends in a region which is located between a first plane E.sub.1, in which the output location 6 and the roller axis 14 extend, and a second plane E.sub.2, in which the output location 6 extends and touches that side of the roller 13 that faces the label transport means 8. In this case, the roller is arranged such that the perpendicular projection P.sub.1 of the lateral surface 15 of the roller 13 onto the surface 11 of the endless belt 16 encircles the acquisition region 9 in which the dispensed label 5 is acquired by the endless belt 16.

(10) Furthermore, the label orienting device 12, illustrated here by way of example, has a sliding plate 18 and additionally, in the exemplary embodiment in FIG. 2c), also a nozzle 19.

(11) The sliding plate 18 is arranged between the output location 6 and the roller 13 and extends in this case parallel to the dispensing direction S. The sliding plate 18 is in this case arranged such that the projection P.sub.2 of the sliding plate 18 in a direction parallel to the dispensing direction S intersects the lateral surface 15 in the region between the first plane E.sub.1 and the second plane E.sub.2.

(12) The main emission direction A of the nozzle illustrated in FIG. 2c) is in this case directed toward the roller 13 and toward the front end, facing the roller 13, of the sliding plate 18.

(13) In FIGS. 2a) to c), different degrees of curvature and directions of curvature of labels 5 are illustrated. According to FIG. 2a), the label 5 does not have any appreciable curvature. In FIG. 2b), the label is curved slightly to the right and in FIG. 2c), it is curved slightly to the left. As is clearly discernible, as a result of the apparatus 1 according to the invention, the front end of each label 5 is always brought into contact with the surface 11 of the label transport means 8 in the same narrow region, namely in the acquisition region 9, which is only a few millimeters wide. This ensures that each label 5 is placed precisely on the label transport means 8 and thus also ultimately arranged on the product 2 to be labeled with great accuracy and reproducibility.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

(14) 1 Apparatus for labeling individual products 2 Product 3 Advancing device 4 Label dispensing device 5 Label 5a Adhesive side of the label 5b Side of the label facing away from the adhesive side 6 Output location of the label dispensing device 7 Label transfer device 8 Label transport means 9 Acquisition region of the label transfer device 10 Delivery location of the label transfer device 11 Surface of the label transport means 12 Label orienting device 13 Roller 14 Roller axis 15 Lateral surface of the roller 16 Endless belt 17 Label acceleration belt 18 Sliding plate 19 Nozzle 20 Printing unit S Dispensing direction G Straight line P.sub.1 Projection of the lateral surface onto the surface of the label transport means P.sub.2 Projection of the sliding plate onto the lateral surface E.sub.1 First plane E.sub.2 Second plane A Main emission direction of the nozzle